To Figure it Out
by thegreatbluespoon
Summary: It's Sara and it's Nick...take a wild guess as to what it's about.
1. Sara

**Disclaimer- **Yeah, here's the thing…uh, I don't own CSI or any of the lovely and wondiferous things that go along with it. Any similarities between the characters in this are completely and purely intentional. Go ahead and sue me, I've nothing better to do with my time other than violate more copyright laws…

**A/N- **I have been thinking about this for a bit and thought it would be hard to write, since it goes against my usual happy ways of thinking about Sara and Grissom getting busy, but it was surprisingly easy…hope you like it.

* * *

Friends is what they were. That was it, friends and nothing more. Complete and total bullshit in her opinion. They had always been friends. When she first came to Vegas, he was there. He was accepting of her. No questions asked, he just became her friend. The first in fact, well, besides Grissom, of course. 

They never really hung out together as just the two of them. Sara had a major issue with this but never said anything about it, especially to him. It was always the two of them and the rest of the group. After many shifts, they would all go out together. He was always nice enough to open the door for her, pull out her chair for her, and wait for her to sit before he sat. He also, for some damn reason, always sat next to her. She knew not to think anything of it all, though. The niceties that came from him were simply a product of his upbringing.

Hanging out changed soon enough, though. The team had had a particularly difficult case that shift, and all decided they would go out after work again. The case had hit Sara particularly hard this time, and she really didn't feel like going. She caught up with the group after shift and cancelled. They all seemed concerned, but backed off when she insisted that she was all right. They all seemed to buy it, but not him.

She was just about ready to get in the shower when she heard the knock at her door. No one ever came over to visit, so she just figured that it was someone who needed redirecting. She opened the door and couldn't speak when she saw him. It was like the beginning of every dream she had about him. The usual, 'rough day at work, knight is shining armor comes to save her from her depression' and then, of course, they end up getting busy on the couch or chair, or basically any surface in her apartment that would hold them. She had been standing there, basically zoning out, when he said her name four or five times. Finally, when reality bitch-slapped her and brought her back, she stepped aside to let him in. He was there at her door, there was no way in _hell_ she was going to turn him away. He turned and shut the door behind him and locked it. When she stood looking at him, confused, he told her that she might as well sit down and start talking because he wasn't going to leave until she did. She did sit down but she didn't start talking.

A couple of hours later he had broken through her shell, and she started to talk to him. She told of her childhood, the case, her relationship with Grissom over the last few months and how it was falling apart. The tears wouldn't stop, and she was so embarrassed he was there to see her like this; but she kept crying, and he kept holding her, telling her that it was going to be ok. She believed him. She had always believed it when Grissom would hold her and tell her the same thing, but coming from him, it seemed so much more likely. Their relationship took a huge leap forward that night, in her eyes anyway. She was falling in love with her best friend and she didn't know what to do about it.

She was in love with Grissom. She had always loved him, and she always would. They had dated for several months and it was terrific, but in the end, some people just aren't supposed to be together. No hard feelings between them. They both still loved each other and would do anything that the other asked. They wanted the absolute best for each other, and nothing less.

When they had decided to call it off, it was civil. Just because it was civil, though, didn't mean that it had been easy. She was alone in her apartment, crying her eyes out, and she knew that she needed someone there with her. She picked up the phone and called the first person that came to mind. When he answered, all she said was that it was her, and he said he would be right over. He was one of only four people that knew of her and Grissom's relationship. In what seemed like record time, he was there knocking at her door. She opened it and he immediately knew what had happened. He didn't say anything, but she could swear he was happy with her news. Maybe it was just wishful thinking, she said to herself. She cried on his shoulder that night, as she had done so many nights before. Whenever a hard case came up for either of them, they would call the other over and they would sit and soak in the other's company. She had always cared for him, but not like this. That night was the night she had realized that she loved her best friend. No, not that she loved him, she had always loved him. This was more; she was in love with him.

Over the next month or so, she had considered telling him about her feelings, but then would back out of the deal she had made with herself to do so. They were friends and nothing more. She knew that, she hated that she knew it, but she knew it nonetheless. Seeing him everyday at work, and knowing that when she was home all she had to do was pick up the phone and he would be there, no questions asked, to hold her, was killing her. She hated seeing him and knowing that there was no chance for her to be happy with him. It hurt like hell, but she hid it well from all those around her.

She really needed to talk to someone about all of this, but she didn't know who. She knew that she could always talk to Grissom, but she didn't want to talk to him about another guy. That would just be weird as hell. What about Greg? Ha, if she went to Greg to talk, Nick would know about her feelings for him before she even got a full thought about him out of her mouth. She and Catherine had been getting along better lately, but she knew that if she told Catherine that Warrick would know in a heartbeat, and he, in turn, would gladly pass the information on to Nick.

She had walked into work that night just like all of the other nights since she realized just how she felt. She walked in with only one thought in her head, Nick. There were no new cases as of yet, so the crew scattered throughout the building. Sara was in the break room. She knew that he would, eventually, be in there, so it was the obvious choice. She sat at one end of the couch so that when he did come in he could choose whether to sit next to her or not. She grabbed a magazine and started to get into an article when he and Warrick entered. He sat right next to her on the couch, their thighs touching for a split second. Her world froze for an instant and her breath stopped. This brings us now to her current dilemma.

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TBC… Will Sara grow a pair? How does Nick feel? Am I going to have poptarts for breakfast tomorrow? Find out next time in "To figure it out". 

Thanks for reading! Please Review!

thegreatbluespoon ----loves you all!


	2. Nick

Friends is what they were. That was it, nothing more. Complete and total bullshit in his opinion. When she first came to Vegas, all she had was Grissom. Everyone else seemed to jump onto the 'hate the new girl' bandwagon that Catherine had started. He became her friend, no questions asked.

When the team would go out after work, Nick would always do his best to impress her with his southern charm. He would open the door for her, and pull out a chair for her. He _always_ made damn sure that it was he that sat next to her, night after night. Yes, that was how he was raised, but for Sara, he would do it anyway. Though, no matter how well mannered and sweet he was towards her, it didn't really seem to matter to her. He knew that if he could go out with her after work, as just the two of them, he could really impress her. He was always disappointed that it was never just the two of them.

One night after a certain case involving children, rape and spousal abuse, something personal in it for all of them, the team decided that going out that night was needed. Nick was excited because when the team did go out, whether it is to a bar or just out to eat, work was forgotten and they became themselves. This was great for Nick because he got to see more of Sara and who she was, away from the lab. Only problem was, that night Sara declined the offer to go out. Everyone saw that the case had a bigger effect on her than the rest of the team and were concerned about her. She told them that she was fine; she just wanted to go home and rest. Everyone else seemed to buy it, but not him, he knew her better than that. He went out to eat with the team, so as not to draw attention to how much he cared about Sara, but he didn't stick around the diner long though; he wanted to check on Sara.

When he got to her door, he stood and stared at it for what seemed like eternity. What was he going to say to her? What the hell was she going to say to him? Was she just going to turn him away? When he finally did knock and she answered, he was just as speechless as she was. He snapped out of their daze before she did, and when he finally got her attention, he figured then that he knew what to do. He knew that he had the same chance of getting her to volunteer to talk as a hooker did at getting into Heaven. He also knew that she needed to talk to someone, and that someone was going to be him. He walked in, shutting and locking the door behind him. Basically the beginning of every fantasy he had of her. That classic 'she has a bad day, he shows up to save the day and, of course, the end up doing it everywhere in her apartment' type of fantasy. He walked over to her couch and sat down. He told her that she might as well do the same, because he wasn't going to leave until she told him what was going on with her. When she did sit down, it wasn't at the other end of the couch; it was right next to him. He froze and his heart skipped a beat. He was relieved that she didn't start to talk right away, because he wouldn't have been paying attention to a damn thing that came out of her beautiful mouth.

He finally got her to break a couple of hours later. Nick couldn't believe some of the things that she was telling him. The reason the case was hard on her, her childhood, past relationships, her present relationship with Grissom and how it was going down the drain, all came out of her just as quickly as the tears did. He knew that she was embarrassed to have someone see her like that, but he didn't care. He held her for the rest of the night while she cried on him.

Over the next month, anytime either of them had a hard time dealing with a case or just needed to talk, they would call the other. Most cases didn't bother him, but he would still call Sara to come over just to spend time alone with her. In fact, out of all the times she did go over, there were probably only three that were actually warranted by a difficult case. Sure he felt bad for abusing the privilege of having Sara on call at all hours of the day, but all he wanted was to be near her. She wasn't interested in him like he was in her so when the opportunity of her company presented itself, Nick jumped on it.

The day that Grissom and Sara had decided to call off their relationship was pretty much a Godsend for Nick. He had heard about it from Catherine that night at work (what didn't Catherine know!) He was uneasy about it, though, when he realized that Sara hadn't shown up for work that shift. It took everything in him not to call her or rush over to her place right away. He knew that when she needed him, she would call. About half an hour later his phone rang. He knew exactly who it was and you couldn't have wiped the smile off his face if you had hit him upside that head with a brick. He didn't even give her time to talk before he was on his way to her.

He made it to her apartment in a time that was his personal best. When she answered the door, his smile disappeared. She looked like shit; worse than he thought she would, anyway. That night he held her, again, as she cried. This time was worse than all of the other times combined, though. He whispered the comforting words into her ear that had become so familiar to the both of them over the last couple of months. He was in absolute love with Sara and could always tell when there was something different with her. He knew that after that night together, she looked at him differently. Was different good?

All he could think about, at home and at work, was Sara and telling her how he felt. He knew that she cared for him and about him, but to what extent? He wanted to be with her so badly, and he knew that he wouldn't really be happy until that happened. Day after day and shift after shift, he watched her feign happiness for the others, just as he did.

He couldn't tell Sara just yet, but he needed to talk before he did something stupid. Something like professing his undying love for her in front of the entire night shift; a feat he had come too close to accomplishing oh so many times before. Sara was like a daughter to Brass, so he was out. Brass would tell Sara anything that involved her. Warrick was his best friend, after Sara of course, but there was no sense in telling him anything. Warrick would swear to secrecy and still tell Catherine. Catherine would either tell Sara directly, or tell someone else that would say something to her. Greg was a good friend as well, but seriously, its Greg. Around the lab, Greg's inability to keep his mouth from spilling forth secrets and rumors was a famous one. So…Brass, Warrick, Catherine and Greg are all out. That leaves Grissom to talk to. Yeah, like that was going to happen! Talking to Grissom about his love for, and desire to date, Sara…how fucking weird would that be?! Besides, Grissom would probably let it slip to Sara anyway. Nick wanted her to hear it from him, not someone else.

So, with no one to talk to, besides his mother over the phone (who had no clue as to what the hell was going on), he walked into the lab that night with one goal. When he and Sara were alone, he would muster up some sort of strength to tell her how he felt. Hopefully it would be near the end of the night when that happened. (fingers crossed on that one Nick!) The last thing he needed was to be walking around work all depressed when Sara turns him down. Wait, no, not _when_ she turns him down, _if _she turns him down.

Much to Nick's dismay, there were no cases as of yet. This was fantastic in the fact that they weren't paired together. Yet it was disastrous in the fact that they would all be wondering around the lab. This created the possibility, and increased the probability, that he would be alone with her much sooner than he would like. Break room! Sara wouldn't just be sitting around there right? No, she would be doing something useful, somewhere else. The break room was the obvious choice for him. He went off and found Warrick. They decided to try out Warrick's new game and headed for the room. '_Aww shit!_' Nick thought as they hit the doorway and he saw her sitting there.

She was sitting at the far end of the couch. Nick could sit at the other end, thus diminishing most of the self-control problems he seemed to develop when around her. On the other hand, he could sit right next to her and with Warrick on the couch, that meant less room, they would be closer together. '_Score!_' One hell of a difficult decision, right? Wrong. He went with the latter, cutting in front of Warrick as they entered the room, and he moved to take his seat next to Sara on the couch. Just as he began to sit down, a bold idea popped itself into his horny little mind. When he sat, his entire right leg came to rest against her entire left leg. He couldn't help the smirk that crossed his face when he felt her freeze up and heard her breath catch. He now had a small idea as to how she felt about him. Nothing like a little confidence boost to get you through the day, or night, in this matter.

* * *

**A/N: **Last time on 'To figure it out' these questions were posed --

Will Sara grow a pair? – cant tell you everything right away!

How does Nick feel? – what the hell do you think you just read?

Am I going to have pop tarts for breakfast tomorrow? -Pop tarts are my favorite food…hell yes I had them for breakfast!

Oh sweet dilemma…what to do, what to do….

thegreatbluespoon loves you---still!


	3. Helpful Outsiders & Sweet Embarrassments

Sara was desperately in love with Nick and he was very much in love with her. The only problem was that neither knew that was the way the other felt. Fighting the impulse to confess to each other, and just go at it anywhere they could find was hard enough just when they walked past each other. One could only imagine the difficulty they were having now that they were not only sitting next to each other, but that they were touching. One of the dream of dreams that they both shared. Well, except for Warrick sitting with them, they do have their limits you know.

Warrick saw Nick's move on Sara. He had always known that Nick liked her. The move he pulled was proof enough for him. He was just glad that Nick was finally looking like he was going to do something about it. He also just loved the reaction he had gotten out of Sara. "Sara…hey there Sara!" Warrick was nearly yelling at her but she was still zoned out. "Way to go Nicky, I think you broke her!" he laughed.

"My bad, man." Nick shrugged his shoulders and laughed when Sara finally came to, seemingly at the mention of his name.

"What?" she finally breathed and looked up from her magazine. "Yeah…um, Warrick?"

"Nothin' Sar, just checking if you were still with us." He laughed, and sat down

"Yeah, sorry...um…this article, you know…it's uh, a good one" she cleared her throat. Her excuse was near pathetic, but it's all she could come up with. Nick's hot friggin' leg was still touching hers. Not that she was complaining. God no, she wasn't complaining.

"Sara looks, uh, _fine _…to me, Warrick" Nick said, with enough emphasis on 'fine' to choke a fucking horse, as he smiled at her and nudged her a bit with his arm. "Now quit stalling and let's play!"

"Yeah, right Nick, you're the one who should be stalling."

"Whatever War, lets go!"

"I'm gonna kick your ass boy!"

They all sat there for about half an hour while Nick was being decimated by Warrick. Warrick had shifted for comfort several times, but not Nick and Sara. Neither had dared to move. No way in hell was one going to risk breaking contact with the other.

Warrick was absolutely loving the whole situation. "Damn Nicky! You really suck today!"

"Yeah, well…I just, uh…haven't…I haven't played this before! You aren't winning by that much, anyway!"

"Not winning by that much? Nick, its 103 to 27! I'm kicking your ass! There's not even a word to describe that kind of ass beatin'! Where's your mind at?" He knew damn well where his mind was

'_My mind? My mind is on the one and only Sara Sidle sitting right next to me! Touching me! What did I just get myself into?' _he thought "Nowhere. It's just, you know…I'm bored, I suck at this game!"

Sara had spent the last half hour, not watching Nick have his ass handed to him, but thinking. She saw that Nick had cut in front of Warrick to get to the couch first and it would've been apparent to a blind man that the whole leg thing was deliberate. '_Don't know what the hell he's doing but I can certainly play back.'_ She thought

She shifted around on the couch so that her whole body was practically leaning into his. She enjoyed the same reaction that he had gotten from her when their legs touched. "Warrick's right Nicky, you do suck at this!" she smiled at him

He smiled back "Yeah, ok guys, I get it…I suck at this game. Let's not damage my ego anymore than it already is." He knew what Sara was doing, so he shifted his weight and leaned back into her. "Hey Warrick, you got anymore games with you here?"

Warrick was loving the night more and more. "Yeah man, I'll go get 'em." He went to stand up but Nick stopped him, he had to get out of there before the urge he was having took over.

"No man, I'll go. I have to…go to, uh, the bathroom, so I'll get 'em."

"Yeah ok. They're in the backseat. There are two or three more so just grab 'em all."

"Will do." As he went to stand, another one of those evil little thoughts rose up. Nick put his hand on Sara's thigh and slowly moved it to her knee, for support in standing up of course. He smiled and left the room.

As Nick left, Sara dropped the magazine on the floor and threw her head back onto the couch while letting out a huge sigh and cursing under her breath. Something about a 'hot, cocky bastard' that just didn't understand what he did…

Warrick couldn't help but laugh. "You alright there, Sara?"

"NO! Jesus, what an ass! What the hell was that!? He cannot do that! Can he do that?!"

"Do what? He likes you, ya know."

Her eyes widened in hope and shock as she looked at Warrick "Shut up! He does not!" She threw her head back and sighed again "You really think he does?" she asked with a smile stretched clear across her face.

"Easy killer! Of course he likes you, Sara! It's pretty damn obvious, you know. Almost as obvious as how much you like him. You both got it bad, girl! Hell a bunch of us even got a bet on you two."

"What! A bet? On Nick and me? Not cool Warrick!"

"Sara, why don't you just tell the man? He feels the same."

"Because I'm a big chicken," she snorted. "You know what happened the last time I got involved with someone here."

"Yeah, I do. You and Grissom still love each other though. Don't let one failed relationship ruin a chance at what could be a great one, Sara."

"Wow Warrick, that's deep." She grinned

"You gonna tell him or not? You need to tell him. I'll do it for you, if you want."

"I'd rather tell him myself. God, this is like junior fucking high all over again!"

"Understandable, Sara. I won't say anything, but you really need to. How the hell am I supposed to get anything done around here if I am too busy laughing at you two messing with each other?!"

"Funny…you promise not to say anything?"

"Promise."

"Not even to Catherine?" she raised her eyebrow at him

"What…why would I tell her?" he tried to sound innocent

"Oh come on Warrick! You think Nick and I are obvious…"

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Nick was walking through the halls towards the doors with a bigger grin on his face than when he had found out Sara and Grissom broke up. His whole body was on fire from touching her. He was messing with her and she was playing back…how friggin' hot was that?! Maybe telling her wouldn't be as hard as he thought it would be...

Catherine saw the smile on Nick's face and ran up to him with a grin of her own.

"Hey Cath."

"You look _awfully_ happy there, Nicky! Please tell me I win!"

"Win? What are you talking about?"

"The bet. _Please _tell me you finally asked Sara out! If you finally do it this week, I win three hundred dollars!"

His smile disappeared "You've been taking bets on me and Sara!?"

"Yes, of course we have. You know we bet on everything around here! By the way, Greg won the bet about why the rubber duck was covered in lube in the case from..." she saw the look on his face "Shit! I don't win, do I? Oh well, this is only Monday so you still have the rest of the week to stop being such a wuss!"

"I didn't know that people realized I liked her."

"Oh my God Nick, are you serious?! You two couldn't be more obvious if you tried! She told me she likes you, Nick. We even had to convince the new lab tech that you two weren't already married." She laughed

"Wow, marriage is a bit ahead of me but…wait. She told you that she likes me?" his grin returned.

"Of course she told me. She tells me everything, and like I said Nicky, you couldn't be more obvious." Catherine was lying out her ass

"I thought that she might…maybe, like me a bit, but…I …just thought she was messing with me."

"Yeah, in the exact same way you mess with her. She loves you just as much as you love her. Why don't you just tell her, Nick?"

"Because I'm a huge chicken" he snorted, as both of their pagers went off

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Catherine, Nick and Grissom all walked into the break room, joining Greg, Sara and Warrick. Catherine caught Grissom's eye and motioned between Sara and Nick. She winked at him, and it didn't take him long to figure out what she was getting at. The only people around the lab that didn't know how Nick and Sara felt about each other were, well, Nick and Sara. He nodded and took his seat. Warrick saw the look and knew he had better play along with Catherine and Grissom.

"Well, I have a ton of paperwork to do still, so you all get cases tonight while I stay here. Warrick, you have a 419, take Greg with you. Nick, we have a B and E for you. Catherine, for some reason, you get the privilege of working a case that you were handpicked for by the sheriff." He saw her questioning look "Don't ask me, I have no idea."

"What about me Grissom?" Sara was pissed that she didn't get a case

"Uh, well if Warrick, Catherine or Nick need some help…do that."

--Enter first embarrassing moment here.--

Sara reached over, grabbed Catherine's file, and began reading it, just as Nick announced that he still had to go to the bathroom.

"It's pretty big. Do you want me to come help you with it?" Sara asked, still looking at the file, not seeing the absolutely priceless faces of her coworkers.

"OH MY GOD!" Greg lost it first, nearly falling out of his chair

Sara looked up to see everyone was crying from laughing so hard. All except for Nick that is. He was staring at her with raised eyebrows and a _very_ suggestive smirk on his face.

"What? What'd I say?" she was confused as she looked at Grissom, who was laughing just as hard as everyone else was at her

Catherine, still laughing her ass off, leaned over and explained to Sara what had just happened. Sara's jaw dropped and her face went countless shades of red.

"Alright Nick!" yelled Greg, while giving Nick, who was still staring at Sara, a high five.

"Shut up Greg!" Sara couldn't have been more embarrassed "That's NOT what I meant!"

"So, it's not that big then?!" Warrick asked between laughs, as he slapped Nick, who _still _hadn't wiped the smirk off his damn face as he continued to stare at her, on the back

"Ok! The next fucking person to say anything is going to get something cut off and I _guarantee_ it WILL be something you miss!" Sara yelled

Catherine stopped laughing finally and wiped her eyes. "You ruined my make-up Sara and no, I don't need help but maybe they do." She pointed at Warrick and Greg, and gave Greg a small kick under the table

"No, I think we're good on this one, Sar." Warrick said, remembering to go with Catherine's little plan

"Greg?" Sara was almost whining. Nick was the only person left for her to go with.

Greg knew what Catherine's kick had meant, and he knew he better go with what seemed to be a plan. "Uh, no Sara. As Warrick said, we're good. Sorry!"

Grissom cut in "Well, that settles it then Sara; you're with Nick on the B&E."

Sara looked at Nick, who STILL hadn't changed his look or dropped the one sided staring contest he had going with her. Her face went slightly red again and she turned back to Grissom. "Two CSIs aren't really necessary for a simple B&E, Grissom. I'll find something better to do around here." She felt like such a bitch for saying that she didn't want to go, but after that whole couch stunt between her and Nick, she was _not_ ready to be alone with him.

Grissom looked over at Catherine who shot him a 'Do it or I'll castrate you' look and he complied...quickly. "Sara, just go with Nick."

"But Grissom-"

"Sara, please don't argue with me." he handed the assignment slips out "Nick is primary so do what he says. You two had better go, the scene is over an hour away someplace out in, what Greg refers to as, B.F.E." Grissom smiled and left the room, followed by Catherine and Warrick

"Oooh, with Nick as primary you have to do _whatever_ he says, Sara! Have fun in the bathroom, Nick!" Greg smiled at him and ran out of the room when Sara threw a stapler at his head

'_Fuck!'_ Sara thought

'_Yes!' _Nick thought

She turned and looked at Nick "What the hell is _that_ look for?"

The only thing that changed on his face was the magnitude of his grin, which had just tripled in size. He leaned back casually in his chair. "What look?"

"I was talking to Catherine, you know!"

"Not how it sounded to me."

"I know how it sounded, Nick, but it's not what I meant."

"So, what then…you won't be helping me?" he asked with a mock hurt look on his face

Her jaw dropped and the redness returned.

Seizing the moment, Nick grabbed her keys. "I'm driving, but I still need to go to the bathroom." He smiled at her "I uh, can handle it, though. I've been doing it on my own, you know, for a while now. See you outside." He winked at her, and left

'_Shit! Did he just wink at me?! God he is so hot! This is going to suck! He friggin' winked at me! Oh, fan- freaking- tastic. Stuck alone with Nick for an hour there and an hour back, with no escape! SHIT! He winked at me! Might as well tell him now, like Warrick said. Sara…no one to interrupt in B.F.E. Should I mess with him a little more? I can't believe he winked at me!' _she thought, as she headed to the locker room to get her stuff

When she got outside, she was confused to see Nick waiting on the passenger side of her SUV. "I thought you were driving?"

"Might be yours but I sure as hell ain't letting you drive!" He smiled and opened her door for her. "You offered me help, so I'll be nice and help you." He winked at her again

"Ok that wasn't….Nick, that-"

"I know, Sara…just get in, would you?"

She blushed as she smiled, thanked him, and got in. He smiled back, and blushed just as bad, when he shut her door. He ran around the front of the SUV, keeping eye contact with her the whole time.

--Enter second embarrassing situation here.--

Sara couldn't help but laugh when Nick tripped and went down…hard. When he got in and saw her fighting back the laughter, he wanted to die.

"You, uh, ok Nick?" she laughed

"Um, yeah I guess. Could've screwed that a bit more gracefully…" he said, while inspecting his bleeding elbow

"Let me see it" she said as she took his arm "Ow, good one!"

"No, its fine Sara." He couldn't have been anymore embarrassed

"It's not fine Nick. You're bleeding." She sounded a bit too concerned for 'just friends'. "You, um, might contaminate something, I mean." She cleared her throat and reached back for her kit, giving Nick the perfect view down her shirt and the skin of her side and stomach where her shirt lifted, as she turned.

-- Third uncomfortable moment right about...--

When she turned back with her first aid kit, Nick was still staring at her. "Give it to me, Nicky." She said in a low voice as she smiled

_That_ got his attention! "What?!" he gulped, with a face as red as a baboon's ass, as his eyes darted to hers

She held her hand out "Your arm, Nick. Give me your arm." She rolled her eyes and laughed. "You're a perv, you know"

"What?"

She raised her eyebrows at him "You know what, Nick."

Realizing that he hadn't exactly been discreet in his endeavor to undress her with his eyes, his face had another few shades of red added to it. "No, there was…you…had a, uh, bug…on the…your shirt." He stammered "I was just trying to figure out what it was, is all!" he stared at the floor '_Great going Nick! She thinks you're a pervert now! All you have to so is talk to her like Catherine said…quit fucking it up!_' he thought

"Well…thanks for looking out for me…I guess." she smiled

He was relieved that she let go of the whole perv thing. "Yeah, yeah any time."

-- And would you look at that….moment number four is rounding the corner! Jesus, are these two going for a damn medal or something?!

He flinched when she wiped alcohol on his arm.

"Sting?"

"Kinda. Its, uh, cold and wet…surprised me." he shrugged

"What's wrong Nicky? Only like it hot and wet?" she smiled and winked at him '_Holy shit Sara! Where in the hell did that come from?! Dirty…'_

His mouth dropped open and he stammered. He was about to say something when she started to blow on his arm ever so seductively. He didn't mean to let it out, but he groaned.

"I take it that's better then?" she smirked…her plan had worked

"Yeah…fantastic" he said with a completely blank face and monotone voice

"Good" she put a band-aid on his elbow and kissed it "We should go now. Long trip ahead of us."

He just stared at her _'Holy Hell! She just put her lips on me! Damn band aid!' _he silently cursed the band-aid on his arm that kept her lips from his skin

"Nick…hello? Where you at, Nicky?" she waved her hand in front of his face

He snapped out of it "Yeah…S-Sara?"

"I said we should probably go now. B.F.E, you know." She laughed and pointed towards the road

"Yeah, going…I was getting…it…we…yeah, let's go." He tried to play it cool, but it just wasn't working.

--Nick Stokes and Sara Sidle, currently second in the awkward standings. Let's see if they go for first…--

She smiled and closed her kit. Stretching out **way** more than what was necessary to put the kit back, she smiled as he watched her again.

"Something else wrong with my shirt, Nick? Must be pretty interesting bugs…get it off, will you?" she said, while leaning towards him

'_Yeah, it's not on my bedroom floor!' _he thought "Um, no just um…yeah we should go now." He smiled at her knowing that he had just been busted a second time. '_You are such a spaz, Stokes! Idiot!'_ he started the truck and they drove off.

* * *

**A/N: **Hope you liked it…funny, not like before but I can go back to serious if you want….let me know! R&R

thegreatbluespoon


	4. Silence and Anger

**A/N:** First of all, I would like to say SORRY to all who have been waiting. If this chapter sucks, my bad. It went straight from my brain to the computer so when a lovely bolt of lightning kicked my computer's ass I had to redo it from memory (something I don't have the best of!) After I got it re-typed, this site was being a jerk and wouldn't let me post anything! The next will be up much sooner than this one was!

* * *

Neither had the guts to tell the other how they felt so for now mind games would have to do for the both of them. Once they got away from the lab though, it was different. The friendly musings had ended, and neither had the nerve to say one word to the other.

Thirteen minutes and forty-two, forty-three, forty-four seconds into the drive so far, and nothing but dead silence. Neither had moved since they had left the parking lot, not even so much as to turn on the radio.

'_Come on Sara! You were just talking and flirting with him fifteen minutes ago, why not now? Because there is no one around to stop you when you go too far? This silence is going to drive me nuts. Fifteen minutes can't be good! Maybe I pushed it too far…what if I scared him off! Oh man, Sara, you fucked up! I'm hungry, is he hungry? Is he going to say something? Should I say something? Oh, for fucks sake Sara, just talk!_' she thought to herself, while Nick was having a similar conversation in his own head

"_Fifteen minutes, man! Oh man Nick, you fucked up! She really does think you're a pervert! Fifteen minutes can't be good! Did I push it too far with her? I'm hungry, is she hungry? Jesus, is she going to say something?! Do I need to say something? Why cant you just flirt and talk with her like before? Too scared to be alone with her Stokes? You big baby, she isn't going to hurt you. For fucks sake, Nick, just talk_!'

"I-" they both started to talk at the same time.

"Sorry, ladies first." He smiled.

"Don't worry, it wasn't anything important. What were you going to say, Nick?"

"It uh, it wasn't important." He sighed quietly.

"Okay" she sighed too

Another five minutes and …seventeen seconds of silence later, Sara was the first to talk. "So…you good?"

"What?"

"How are you doing, I mean? We haven't hung out in a couple of days, I was just curious…or whatever."

"Oh, well, I'm good. Thanks."

"Good" she smiled.

Silence again…

"Oh shit, Sara! I'm sorry! How are you doing? I totally forgot my manners, I'm sorry." He felt like an idiot

She laughed "Its okay, Nick. I'm okay."

"That great." He smiled back.

"Well, I maxed out on overtime, I know, imagine that, right?…Anyway, I got stuck in the lab so there aren't really any cases to mess with me."

"Right."

"Yeah." She sighed.

'_Good lord, Nick, you act like she is going to kill you! Just say something to her before she thinks you hate her or something!_'

"Sara, we don't…okay, when…you-"

"Spit it out, Nicky!" she laughed.

"Sorry…you don't, um…when we hang out together…it doesn't have to be because of a case, Sara."

"Anytime?"

"I really don't care when. We can hang out as friends, you know."

"I kinda thought that's what we did, Nick." She looked confused.

"No, we hang out as coworkers that understand and comfort each other. We should hang out as friends, not because one of us has a bad day at work."

She smiled wide. "Sounds good, Nick."

"Really?" he sounded surprised.

"Yeah, I completely agree with you."

"Great, um…what are you doing after work tonight?" he figured that by the time work was over, he would be able to tell her.

"Tonight…well probably the same thing I do every night."

"Which is?"

"Sit around and think about y-, how bored I am." She blushed, and mentally hit herself for her slip.

Nick grinned, he had heard her mess up and couldn't have been happier. She just said, well almost said, that she thinks about him. Besides liking him, what other reason did she have for sitting around thinking about him?

"Sounds like a blast."

"Oh, it is." She said with mock enthusiasm.

"Well, at the risk of ruining your fun, do you want to…go out?"

"Go out?" she grinned.

"Yeah, go out. We'll go someplace when we get back, as…as friends." he didn't want to push it too far with her yet. '_Maybe this case will go fast and we can get to tonight sooner...'_ he thought.

Her grin disappeared at the words 'as friends' and she slumped down a bit in her seat "Sounds great, Nick."

"Good. Um…not that I am trying to change the subject or anything, but…do you know where we are?" he looked embarrassed.

"You don't?!" she sat up.

"Well, I can't drive _and _read a map."

"I thought you knew!" she laughed.

"I'm serious, Sara. I don't know if we've even been going in the right direction. You never said turn anywhere, so I thought we just went straight for a while!"

"Oh my god, Nick!" she laughed harder "Are we really lost?!"

"We're not lost, Sara…I just don't really know where we are."

"Wow, big difference!" she was still laughing.

"Immense." He finally laughed too.

"Just keep going, maybe we'll see a sign or something"

"Look at your map, try and figure out where we are."

"Nick…I don't have one in here." she blushed.

"You serious?!"

"Afraid so" she said.

"Sara… who doesn't keep a map in their truck?"

"Me, obviously."

"Better hope we find a gas station."

"Look, there's a sign." Sara pointed, and Nick pulled over.

"Great, thirty miles to the nearest town." He sighed.

"Oh Nicky, don't whine. What town are we going to?"

"Someplace that starts with an 'H'."

"An 'H'? Look on the assignment slip."

Nick dug around in all of his pockets and came up empty. "Um Sara, we may have an issue…"

"You lost it?" she said with wide eyes.

"I must have dropped it when I fell back at the lab." He blushed.

"Well, that's what you get for showing off." She grinned.

"I wasn't…showing off."

"Oh bull! Staring the whole time...its a wonder you didn't break your neck!"

"I wasn't _staring_, there was…"

"Another bug, Nick?" she grinned, and he blushed more.

"Okay fine! There wasn't…before, on your shirt…when…"

"You gonna talk, Nicky?" she laughed.

"When I was looking at you before, Sara, there wasn't a bug."

"Nick?" she smiled.

"Yeah, Sara." He sighed.

"I'm not retarded. I know there wasn't anything there."

"Really?"

"Oh my God, a bug, Nick? A five year old could've done better than that!"

"Yeah well…We should find that assignment slip. Did I give it to you?"

"You wish"

"Ha ha, Seriously, we need it."

"Just call Grissom."

"Sara, there is no way in hell I am going to call that man and tell him that I lost the slip…you call him."

"No! You lost it, you call."

"Come on, just call and ask. He doesn't need to know I lost it."

"Fine, you're a baby, you know."

"Oh, you love me and you know it." he smirked.

"What?!" she snapped "No, I don't! Who told you that?!"

"Um…it was a _joke_." He was confused "Didn't mean to piss you off. Sorry"

"I'm not _pissed_…just give me your phone, I'll call."

"What's wrong with your phone?"

"Its dead now give me yours." She held her hand out.

"Needy, aren't you?" he started to hand her his phone, but pulled it back. "_Don't_ tell him I lost it." he finally gave her his phone.

"Whatever"

"Seriously Sara, don't tell him."

"All I'm hearing from you, Nick, is blah, blah, blah."

"Pain in my ass…"

"Damn straight, now shut up its ringing." She said, while putting her hand over his mouth.

"Grissom."

"Hey Griss, its Sara."

"What's up?"

"You wouldn't happen to remember where Nick and I were headed do you?"

"Why?"

"Because we're lost."

"Look at the slip."

"Well I would, except Nick lost it" she looked at Nick and grinned. He licked her hand and she punched him.

"Hamilton, I think."

"Shit!"

"What's wrong, Sara?"

"There isn't even a Hamilton on the sign. Nick went in the wrong direction." She sighed.

"Great, well I have to go. Look at your map and figure it out."

"Bye" she hung up and handed Nick his phone. "Wrong way, Nick."

"I told you not to tell him, Sara!"

"Oops, must have slipped." She said innocently and shrugged.

"Yeah, right."

"Honest. I can't believe you went in the wrong direction."

"Well, I can't believe _you_ don't have a map."

"I was cleaning out my truck a couple of days ago and I must have thrown it away. Normally there is one in here."

"Which way should we go then?" Nick asked, while looking around.

"Back the way we came, I guess. There was a gas station about twenty miles back."

"We are _never_ going to get to the scene." He sighed loudly.

"Well whose fault is that Nick? Grissom and Greg never got me lost before." She said, obviously not with enough humor in her voice, because Nick snapped.

"Whose fault? It's your fault, Sara! Who the hell throws away a map?! We are in the middle of nowhere, without a clue or a map, and you sit there and joke around about it and then blame this shit on me?! Maybe if you weren't so damn busy taking pity on yourself and messing with me, we would be at the scene by now!" he punched the steering wheel and got out of the truck.

* * *

Ooooh anger! Well, I hope that it wasn't too horrible for you all.

You know the drill, review it!

thegreatbluespoon


	5. Maps and Ideas

Sara sat in shock for a couple of minutes before she realized what had just happened. Nick had snapped at her. She couldn't remember the last time he had been that pissed at her. Actually, she couldn't remember any time Nick had been so mad that he just went off on her. '_I don't pity myself, do I? He's right about me messing with him, but he's been doing it right back. It's obvious he likes me as a little more than friends, so why the hell did he just bite my head off?'_ She was pissed now and climbed out of the truck and made her way over to Nick. She shoved him so hard that his back hit the truck door.

"What the hell was that, Nick?"

"Nothing. Just get back in the truck, Sara." He already felt like an asshole for yelling at her. He didn't need her help to feel worse about it.

"Don't even think that you are going to tell me what to do! You are _not _going to snap on me like that and just expect me to forget it!" she yelled.

"Get in the truck, Sara." He stepped forward, trying to keep his voice calm '_Why the hell is she so difficult?'_ he thought.

"No." she shoved him again "No, I won't. You tell me what the hell that was all about, and then I'll get in."

"Sara! Get in the goddamned truck now!" he yelled again, and stepped forward "I'm not in any mood to talk to right now. Get in!" and with that he turned around, climbed in, and started the truck. _'Way to screw up, Nick!'_

Sara didn't move. She was beyond pissed now; her mood was closer to irate. No way in hell was he acting like that towards her. She crossed her arms, cocked her hips to one side, raised an angry eyebrow at him and waited, just staring at him through his window. In her mind, she _was_ going to get an explanation.

'_Great!'_ Nick thought '_Just great. The Sara Sidle Death Stare. Why the hell did you snap at her? Because she compared you to Greg and…Grissom? You know she was just joking Nick. It's obvious that she likes you as more than a friend. You saw how disappointed she was when you invited her out as 'friends'. She probably hates you now though. With good reason, you asshole!'_ Nick was mentally kicking himself for the way he had acted towards her. He loved her, but, for some reason, he couldn't act like he did. The only things he could show her were teasing and now apparently anger. What the hell was wrong with him? He rolled down his window and sighed. "Sara, will you _please_ get into this truck so that we can try and go do our jobs?" he nearly begged.

"You get out here and tell me why you yelled at me for no reason, and I will."

"I don't know why I yelled at you, Sara."

"There is a reason, Nick."

"I don't feel like talking right now. What I do feel like doing is our jobs. Please?"

"You need to talk to me."

"Get in."

The only movement that she made was shifting her weight to her other hip.

That was it, she wasn't giving up and he wasn't giving in. She thought he was when he got out of the truck and walked up to her, but she was wrong. He grabbed her up and began carrying her around to the passenger side.

"Put me DOWN, Nick!" she yelled, trying to fight her way out of his arms.

"Make me." he said simply.

"I'll shoot you!" No she wouldn't.

"No, you won't." he said, while releasing one of his arms from around her waist to open the passenger door. He basically threw her in and shut the door. He ran back around to his side and climbed in, only barely missing her fist flying directly at his head.

"Holy shit! Would you just calm down Sara?! I'm sorry, alright! I didn't mean it!" he yelled again, while grabbing her arms. She might be a girl, but Nick knew damn well Sara could, and would, make a damn good effort at kicking his ass.

"If you're really sorry and didn't mean it, then you wouldn't have said it in the first place! Let me go!"

"Calm down, stop trying to hit me and I will let you go!"

She finally stopped fighting and he let go.

"Well…you gonna tell me why you yelled at me?"

"After work."

"Fine, don't tell me. I hope you feel like an asshole for the rest of shift for yelling at me without reason."

"Sara, there was a reason. Right now I would just like to figure out where the hell we are." Nick said, as they drove off back towards the gas station they had seen earlier in the night

"Nick, I would just like to say that if it isn't about work or where we are, don't bother talking to me." she sighed '_C'mon Sara, little harsh and quite immature don't you think!_' She wasn't going to take it back though. She didn't want Nick to think that he was forgiven.

"Sara, please don't be like that."

"Be like what, Nick?"

"Please don't act like you are now." He sighed.

"Act like a bitch you mean? You're being an asshole so I'll act however I damn well please. Just drive so we can get this night over with."

He cringed at her words "Over with?"

"Over with. You can forget about us hanging out 'as friends' tonight." She said 'as friends' with as much hate as she possibly could. "Nick you obviously have some sort of issue with me tonight. You won't talk about it, so for right now, tonight, you can just piss off!"

"I'm sorry."

"Sorry, sorry, sorry. What the hell ever Nick, just drive." She sighed. '_Calm down, Sara. Why the hell are you being so hard on the guy? He did apologize, no matter how annoying it has gotten. No need to be this pissed at him. It **is** stupid that you threw away your map. Who does that?' _She laughed a bit at her last thought, which made Nick somewhat relieved, but he knew it best to keep to himself.

---------------------------------------------------

When they finally reached the gas station, Sara announced that she was going to find a bathroom while Nick found a map. The attendant, or Chuck as his nametag implied, was a very nice older man. He dug around behind the counter and, after a few minutes, found Nick a map. He gave it to him for free since it was old, and because he had noticed Nick's badge and gun.

"So, where did that pretty lady friend of yours go?" Chuck asked.

Nick looked up from the map he was studying "Bathroom." He sighed.

"Predictable" he laughed.

"Yeah, I guess so." Nick laughed back.

"I take it ya'll been fightin'?"

Nick just raised an eyebrow at the old man.

"She looked pissed when she came in and you looked a bit relieved to be away from her for a moment." Chuck reasoned.

"Yeah, that's what it is." Nick sighed loudly.

"She start it? No, let me guess…you said somethin' stupid?" he asked, with a slight grin on his face.

"This wouldn't happen to be your side job away from therapy, would it Chuck?" Nick smirked.

"Ah, so I'm right then?" Chuck asked proudly.

"She said something to me that I know she was joking about, but when I heard it, I just…I got so pissed."

"Yelled at her?"

"Like an idiot."

"Somethin' we're all guilty of son."

"No, I blew it out of proportion and yelled at her. She got pissed and stayed pissed."

"Well, at least you recognize the fact that you blew it."

"Big time." Nick sighed.

"You apologize to her?"

"More than once. Why?"

"Well young man, not everyone wants to be apologized to for hours on end."

"Yeah?"

"Sometimes one good apology is a hell of a lot better than a shit ton of little ones. Pardon the language."

"Don't worry about it." Nick said folding up the map he had no interest in anymore. "What do you mean by 'good apology'?"

"Jesus son, ain't you even had a girlfriend before? A good one is the whole shebang, the big-to-do, the-"

Nick cut him off "I think I got it. So I need to stop saying sorry to her?"

"You know, for being from…Texas, I assume…" with Nicks nod of approval, he continued " you sure do lack that southern charm and know how."

Nick grinned, "Generally I do damn well with the ladies, but around her…it's all I can do not to slobber all over myself."

"Ah, she's one of _them_." At Nick's questioning look, he added "You love her and she don't know it. That's why she's still mad at ya. Probably because she loves you too." Chuck smirked.

"You sure I'm not gonna be billed for this conversation, Chuck?"

"No, I'm just trying to help out. I'm right again, ain't I?"

"You _are_ good, Chuck." Nick grinned.

"I know, I know. So about this apology business…"

"Yeah?"

"Well hell, son! You need a plan! You need the big-to-do type of apology!"

"Oh yeah?"

"Of course! I was an idiot, not unlike yourself, about….mmm, ten years ago. Except what I did was worse. My dumbass cheated on my wife. All I did for _days_ was apologize to her. One of my good buddies and I went out drinkin' and he explained to me that it is possible to do a little overkill when it comes to apologies. After a while, all of those little ones start sounding like you are saying them just to say them, with no meaning behind them at all. When you can give one big apology and really show the love behind it, that's when your lady friend will forgive you. Of course, when he was telling me this I was plastered and it took me a couple of days to remember the whole conversation, but when I did remember it, I knew he was right. I got a hotel room, room service, wine, chocolate, candles, rose petals, the whole shebang." Chuck paused for a second and smiled at the memories. "Anyway son, when my wife walked into that room, I didn't even have to _say_ anything. She turned around, said 'apology accepted' and we didn't leave that hotel room for two days!"

"Sounds like a good apology."

"She sure thought so!"

Nick laughed, "I don't think Sara, that's her name, I don't think she would go for that though. She-"

Chuck stopped him when he saw Sara coming up from behind "That's right son, just follow the map and you'll get there."

Nick was a little confused until he saw Sara. He cleared his throat slightly "Uh, yeah. Thanks, Chuck. We really appreciate it."

"Not a problem. I get lost couples in here all the time." he winked at Nick

"You get a map, Nick?" Sara asked with a fake ass smile on her face, trying to be cheery in the company of a stranger

"Yeah, Chuck here gave us one." He held the map up.

"Great. So you know where we're going?" she smiled briefly at Chuck and looked back to Nick.

"Yeah, I checked out the map, but could you take it. Just remind me where to go?" he smiled back, trying to take advantage of her fake good mood.

"Oh, I'll be sure to tell you where to go, Nick." She said with a certain twinge in her voice.

Both men cringed a bit at her words. They knew what she meant.

"Great, if you two don't need anything else, I've some cleaning to do around this place."

"Sorry, Chuck. Thanks for the map." Sara gave him another smile and headed out to her truck.

"Damn, son, she is mad at you." Chuck smiled.

"Yeah. You wouldn't happen to know where any good hotels are out here, would you?"

Chuck just smiled.

* * *

I know what's gonna happen and yoooou don't!!

thegreatbluespoon----is a terrible, terrible person, I know...


	6. Awkward Sounds

**A/N-** So... is there any excuse that I can give you all that you'd accept from me? I really do apologize. I completely forgot all about this story and the GSR bandwagon kept me rather busy. My bad, forgive me! 

Thanks to kakidoll for the beta on this one, and all of the old chapters as well. I know I'm a pain in the ass, Kim.

* * *

All Nick had done, the entire night so far, was apologize to Sara. He felt like a total dumbass now that he thought about it. Why had it taken some old guy at a gas station to point out that, Nicholas Stokes- ladies man, according to half the lab, was doing the wrong thing in this situation?

God, the things she did to him! He thought back to what she had said earlier '_Oh my God, a bug, Nick? A five year old could've done better than that!_' Of course a five year old could've done better than what he did. He couldn't think around her. Nick paled in comparison to a five year old when he was with Sara.

When he was with her, he lost the ability to speak correctly, walk correctly, and think correctly. He nearly lost the ability to keep his hands to himself, though back at the lab he had lost that battle.

Six years he had been around her, and never once had a problem with anything, until he realized that he loved her. Now he had pissed her off and the only way to make it better was to go all out for a huge apology, since his little ones had worn out their welcome.

He needed a completely blown out, balls to the wall, pull out all the stops, hardcore apology, and Chuck had given him a great idea.

"Sara?"

"Mm?" was all the response he was going to get from her, or so she had decided anyway.

"I know that you said if it wasn't about the case or work, then not to talk to you, but its too quiet in here and I just wa-" he was cut off by Sara turning on the radio.

What they heard about made both of them shit a brick.

_And I need you now tonight  
And I need you more than ever_

_And if you'll only hold me tight_

_We'll be holding on forever  
And we'll only be making it right_

"Change it!" Nick said quickly.

She sure as hell didn't need to be told twice, hell she didn't even need to be told the first time, her hand was halfway to the knob when he told her to change it.

_I wanna know what love is  
I want you to show me_

_I wanna feel what love is  
I know you can show me_

"Oh my god!" Nick went red, but his color was nothing like that of Sara's.

Neither thought they could be anymore embarrassed or nervous at the moment.

Sara didn't seem to reach for the radio knob fast enough for Nick, so he changed the station.

_I want you to want me.  
I need you to need me.  
I'd love you to love me.  
I'm beggin' you to beg me._

"Oh, come on!" Sara yelled, as they both went for the dial, their hands brushing against each other. Normally this would've been a classic 'feel the sparks between us?' kind of moment but they needed that 'put you in the mood for sweet, sweet lovin' music off of the radio and it needed to come off of there _now_. Sara might have been upset with Nick, but if he would apologize like he actually meant it, jumping his bones would be accomplished without hesitation.

_I've been really tryin , baby  
Tryin to hold back these feelings for so long  
And if you feel, like I feel baby  
Come on, oh come on,_

About the worst possible song for these two just came on the radio. Of course, it always could have been 'Me So Horny'.

_Let's get it on  
Lets get it on  
Let's get it on  
Let's get it on_

"Move, Sara!" Nick yelled, as he fought for the dial.

_We're all sensitive people  
With so much love to give, understand me sugar  
Since we got to be  
Lets say, I love you_

"Just change the goddamn thing, would you?!" she fought back, neither really cared who changed it, but someone sure as hell needed to.

_There's nothin wrong with me  
Lovin you--- And givin yourself to me, can never be wrong  
If the love is true_

_**CRACK!**_

Anyone want to take a quick guess as to what that noise was?

That noise, boys and girls, would have been from the tuning knob snapping off in Sara's hand. Of course, it wouldn't have been too much of an issue if Beefcake Nick hadn't been so overcorrecting with the volume knob right after, in turn, having that piece of crap in his hand as a souvenir.

So now they are stuck, driving down the road, in the middle of nowhere, listening to one of the greatest love songs of all time, blaring in Sara's truck on their way to a scene. How fan-freaking-tastic for them.

"What did I do in a past life?" Sara wondered aloud.

_Don't you know how sweet and wonderful, life can be  
I'm askin you baby, to get it on with me  
I aint gonna worry, I aint gonna push  
So come on, come on, come on, come on baby  
Stop beatin round the bush..._

"Twenty bucks says you were a siren." Nick answered her rhetorical question quietly enough that she didn't hear him over the radio.

_Let's get it on  
Let's get it on  
Let's get it on  
Let's get it on_

"Thank God, its over." Sara sighed.

"Well, I don't know about the stations you listen to, but the ones I listen to generally play more than one song." He laughed nervously. '_Nothing could be worse than Marvin Gaye'_

Nick thought, and pleaded silently to the radio '_Right_?'

To both Sara and Nick's great relief, the host came on the air instead of some more of that horrid music. 'That was a little Marvin for all you love birds out there. We'll be right back with 'I'll Make Love to You' from Boys to Men.'

"No way. No damn way will I be listening to that!" Nick said as he pulled over.

"What are you doing? Why are you pulling over?"

Nick ignored Sara's questions and walked to the back to get into his kit. He came back a minute later with a pair of pliers.

"Nick, what are you doing?"

"Not. Listening. To. More. Sex. Songs." He grunted as he turned the station to country. "There, that's _much _better." He smiled with relief.

"The hell it is." Sara said. "You better get to changing it again. We don't know how far from the scene we are, it looks like it's going to rain, I have to pee again, we're tired, and we are _not_ listening to country music."

Nick was about to protest and say that country was the best, but the look in Sara's eye quickly shut down any comment he would have made, other than "Sorry, what do you want?"

"No sex tunes and _no_ country, that's for damn sure."

No other stations, besides the two, would come in, so it was back to silence for the two. Nick wasn't happy with that, but he figured that Sara was, so he just left well enough alone and drove on to the scene.

The most ridiculously long road trip of either of their lives later, and they were finally at that damned scene, nearly eight hours after being handed the assignment slip. When they got there…no one else was there. It was the right address, there was yellow crime scene tape, and it sure as hell looked like a B and E, but there was not one other person around.

"What the hell?" Sara said.

"I don't know." Nick shrugged "Its not like they could all just go home. One officer had to stay, at least."

"I'll call Grissom and see what's up." she said, pulling out her phone. She saw his confused look "What?"

"I thought your phone was dead, Sara." he grinned.

"Um, it was?" she said innocently, as she dialed.

"And it magically charged its own batteries?"

"Shut up, Nick." She rolled her eyes, with a tiny grin on her face.

Nick looked around as Sara talked to Grissom. While he was looking around, Sara started to practically yell into the phone. When she hung up, he waited for her to talk first.

"Ridiculous." She muttered.

It didn't sound like she really meant that for him, so he didn't respond.

"Rain and hotels, its all ridiculous." She muttered again.

Did she just say hotels?

"Nick?"

"Yeah. Sara?'

"Grissom says we need to find a hotel."

Nicks eyes almost bugged out of his head. "What?! What happened? What about the B and E?"

"We apparently took long enough for the manger to cave. Some insurance scheme. Not the point though. Grissom started taking about rain, and spouting off all of the stupid facts about the weather and said that we need to find a hotel for now."

Though it did go along with Nick's plan quite well, he still acted shocked at the idea. "Why the hell do we need to do that?!"

"Its already raining in Vegas and the roads are washed out. We can get a hotel here and drive back later, or drive back a couple towns over now and get a hotel later. Either way, we aren't getting home tonight." She sighed. The thought of staying in a hotel with Nick would be fantastic otherwise, if she wasn't so hell-bent on keeping up the façade of being mad at him, just so she didn't look like an idiot.

"Chuck said something about a decent one up the road from here, or do you want to drive back some?"

"Why were you and Chuck discussing hotels, Nick?" she raised a curious eyebrow at him.

"He…uh…uh, he thought the weather might get bad enough to warrant getting rooms, so he suggested one, just in case."

"Oh."

"Well? We getting rooms there, or driving back?"

"I'm kind of tired."

"So, we'll go get rooms now." Nick said, and started walking back to the truck.

"Great." Sara muttered. "Just freaking great." She joined Nick, and they headed to the hotel Chuck suggested to Nick.

The Hotel Yorba was very nice for being in the middle of nowhere. The only problem was that it was just rooms, no food and Nick and Sara were both starving.

"We aren't too far from the gas station. I'll go get some stuff when it opens in the morning." Nick offered.

"That's nice. I'm going to sleep now." Sara said, as she turned to walk into her room.

"Sara?"

"Yeah?"

"Um…never mind. I'll talk to you in the morning, Sara."

"Good night, Nick." She smiled at him and shut her door.

Before Nick went to bed, he made a list of things he would need for tomorrow.

* * *

Okay, so the next, and final chapter is going to make the rating worth it.

Oh, and I totally stole the hotel name from a Whitestripes song.

You've waited forever for this, so taking a bit more time to review can't be too hard...

thegreatbluespoon


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